money mad

LegacyUser

basically i am 21 have been working 2 years now and i am on a good saving plan. my problem is that my friends are having a great time spending the hard earned cash with thier flashy sports cars and living in apartments having partys and plenty of sex but i am stuck at home just saving my money i feel like going on a mad spending spree.
driving a crapy van gets me down at times also living at home is definitely not healthy for a 21 year old is it. i have a great opertunity to save money right now living at home but i think its starting to get depressing. i want to have my own house soon already have the land so its just a matter of saving good but i feel like i am missing out the madness that people in thier 20s get up to.
whats the best thing to do in a situation like mine?
keep up the good saving or go on a mad spending spree, ya only live once.
i know a flashy sports car is the first item on my list but is it really worth it should i focus on the house now and the the class car when iam an old man i just dont know what to do
i know it sounds a bit stupid but i hope you guys can give me some good sound advice and naybe tell me what ye did when ye started making the money.

Strokesfan

I think it's really admirable that you know what you are aiming for and are working towards it. You shouldn't doubt yourself in that sense. I know young fellas who are struggling with silly amounts of finance repayments on beamers - then think of tax, insurance, tyres etc
You definately should allocate some of your cash to going out, being young and having a great time. Can you stay with friends at the weekends? Do you still go out despite living at home?
Don't put off living your life but don't go getting into massive debt so you can drive a fancy car!! There's plenty of time for that.

SarahMc

$dude21$ wrote: »

....its starting to get depressing. i want to have my own house soon already have the land....
whats the best thing to do in a situation like mine?
keep up the good saving or go on a mad spending spree,.

That is two extremes, there is a happy medium there in the middle! Paying rent is not a waste of money in your early 20s, its an investment in your independence and freedom. Buying a new sports car is, imo a waste of money.

Whats your hurry, your land is not going anywhere. You can build on it in your late 20s, early 30s. Enjoy and live the freedom years. The experiences and memories you will gain from them are much more valuable than cash in the bank.

I agree with Sarah, when you are building on your own land it is better imo to wait till you meet the one. Because it is going to be your home forever and they deserve a say.

Pure Cork

Keep saving. Buy a house, or build one. Sub-let rooms. Why do people assume that if he builds a house he'll never ever live in another house? Don't blow all your hard earned money on sh*te that will go down in value.

LegacyUser

thanks for the advice guys
i thought about it a fair bit last night and what you said pure cork sums it up.

vorbis

You have to live a little man!

I'd agree on not buying an expensive car new, but you can pick up a good one second hand. You do only live once. I would be a saver as well but recognise that I need to spend some money to enjoy life.

The other important thing to realise is that your wages will probably increase as you get older. Saving all your money when you're earning say 10 euro an hour will be something you regret if you end up in a job that pays 20 euro an hour. Strike a balance between saving and spending.

StormWarrior

Do a couple of fun things each year, like a holiday and a festival, and have the occasional night out to relieve the frustration, but carry on saving a bit for the future as well. You don't have to live by exteremes.

chump

FOLLOW YOUR DREAM BHOY


buy that house, and live in it.

it will be worth missing out on the craic, and the nice cars, and the fast women - and jaysus bhoy why live for today when you can save and buy a house in a few years time?

BUY THAT HOUSE, LIVE THE DREAM

pete4130

OP,

In a few years when your friends want to buy a house, they'll have to sell their fast cars and start saving, possibly move back in with their parents to do that.....your fun will be happening when you get the house bought etc....
If you feel like it you can let it out and go do whatever you want....

Julez

pete4130 wrote: »

OP,

In a few years when your friends want to buy a house, they'll have to sell their fast cars and start saving, possibly move back in with their parents to do that.....your fun will be happening when you get the house bought etc....
If you feel like it you can let it out and go do whatever you want....

Yeah but at that stage all his friends will be at home saving... he'll have no1 to have fun with? everyone his age will be settling down

LegacyUser

chump wrote: »

FOLLOW YOUR DREAM BHOY


buy that house, and live in it.

it will be worth missing out on the craic, and the nice cars, and the fast women - and jaysus bhoy why live for today when you can save and buy a house in a few years time?

BUY THAT HOUSE, LIVE THE DREAM

Listen to Chump, there's a poster who knows what he/she/it's doing.

dudara

Personally, I'm nearly 30, in a very long-term relationship, in a well-paying job and I have absolutely no intention of buying a house. It doesn't interest me. I do save and I'm not daft with cash. I personally just don't care about owning a dwelling.

What I'm trying to say is that everyone has different plans and aims in life. You have to have the courage and conviction to follow yours. Don't compare yourself to others, even though it is easy to do. When you're young there is always the feeling that you are missing out on life.

Marksie

Thats good advice from Dudara.

Again in my late 20s i was on the housing ladder, good job etc, but threw it in to move country, put myself through a further degree all because i wanted to. Now some 12 years after moving, i actually have a house here paid for and am deciding on yet another life path change.

So what I am saying, in continuation of dudaras post, is nothing is set in stone. Your plans can change as you yourself change.

If you choose a path you want, go for it whole heartedly and never look back and regret a decision you make in your life but make the decision consciously.

NextSteps

Why not put the savings somewhere safe like the post office, and forget about building a house for a while? You're 21, do you really know what kind of house you're going to want, or even where? If you build it on your piece of land, then it's there for good, and it mightn't suit you at all in a while. What if you meet a girl and she lives at the far end of the world? Building a house is a serious investment of time as well as money - probably all your evenings and weekends for a year. I bet you have better things to be doing, and the land's not going anywhere.
And moving out and paying rent isn't a bad idea at all. Call it an investment in your education.

LegacyUser

thanks for the advice guys
as reguards the house i plan on building it. i work in the construction industry so most of the labour will be free and i have loads of contacts that can help out when i decide to build most of the money will be foundation and materials etc.
i realise now that comparing my situation to my friends was a bit retarded as they had to get apartments for college and work as i am living at home but it works out good for work.
id probably get an apartment if i needed it for work if it came up.
as regurds a relationship iam not in any long term thing yet but would a girl prefer a guy with his own house rather then a bimmer and a 40" tv in his momys house?

dudara

A girl prefers a mature guy rather than a materialistic obsessed eejit.

Whatever you decide to do (and the challenge of building your own home is an adventure) just remember to "keep it real". You sound as if you've got your head screwed on just fine.

LegacyUser

I'm younger than you OP, working since I was 16 and I went and spent all my money on cars and sports bikes while still living with Mammy. Now I regret it and I'm selling them all so I can buy a house. I more or less wasted 50k, 50k that could have been put to much better use. Because if your older than 19 and still living at home when you can afford not to, you're still really only a child. You grow bored with your cars etc after a while, but establishing your independence is priceless I think. I'd rather bus it and have my own place - I'm in construction too so I plan to buy a wreck and do it up. If I were you I'd definitely build my own house.

Rogueish

Never mind what your friends are at. They are probably ass high in debt to afford what they are showing off to the world and will probably be paying for the lifestyle far longer than they would like to admit.

I was in your position a few years ago. Just after finishing college, still at home, working three jobs to keep things going while I was building up a business. Lets just say that my life (or lack of it) got me down.

However five years on I have a thriving business, a car I own outright, living in my own house and a substantial nest egg. My friends many of whom are older (I was pretty young graduating) are starting from scratch now. And while at times I'm envious of their travels etc I still appreciate the standard of living I have achieved. I am still young enough to do the travelling if I want to ... without the debt. I can go out and buy what I want, within reason, with out worrying about the cost. And you will be the same.

Getting established now just means that you are doing the same things as everyone else just in a different order. Good luck

pete4130

I wrote my last post as I was in a hurry. What I meant to say was that if you buy a house now/build a house and get that part out of the way while it is still relatively easy for you to do (with your savings) it leaves you with moree time and more freedom a few years down the road where you have the freedom to do what you want to do. Your friend will still be there in 3 or 4 years maybe thinking of saving some money, some still might be spenging all they have? In that time you'll makenew friends, might decide to let out the house and travel, get lodgers in to pay the mortgage for you and make new friends while your at it and new opportunities will open themselves up to you and you'll have the freedom to explore them should you choose to do so.
In the long term too, depending on how much the house will cost and how long it takes to pay off, you'll be ahead of everyone else when your house is paid off totally, allowing you to enjoy your life further down the line also.
As mentioned before, nothing is set in stone and alot of things can change. You are really young, seem to have your head screwed on and have alot of opportunities to choose from.